online classes Microsoft is rumored to drop a $500 Surface Laptop this fall

[captain_to_fire]

 

 Microsoft is rumored to release a new laptop this fall starting at $500 with a 10th gen core i5, 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage for the base model and ships with Windows 10 in S mode.

 

Quote

 According to my sources, Sparti has a 12.5-inch display with a 10th-generation Intel Core i5 processor, 4GB RAM, and 64GB storage in the entry-level model. It'll ship with Windows 10 in S mode and be priced somewhere between $500 and $600. I'm told that Sparti is being positioned as a more affordable Surface Laptop, similar to how Microsoft positions the Surface Go alongside the Surface Pro today.

 

Microsoft is essentially bringing a "Surface Laptop Go" to market with Sparti, featuring a slightly smaller footprint and significantly lower starting price compared to the actual Surface Laptop which begins at $999. Sparti will hit the market during a time where people are spending less money as a result of the ongoing pandemic, so a new lower priced midrange Surface device couldn't come at a better time.

 If the rumors are true, then it’s a rip off for what you’re getting. 4GB of system memory is simply insufficient in 2020 considering how applications and even Windows 10’s background tasks have gotten more bloated not to mention the pathetic 64 GB of storage which will fill up easily with Windows 10 alone taking up 1/3 of that. I’m pretty sure you can get a better value from other PC OEMs at that price range. 

Windows Central

[BlueChinchillaEatingDorito]

4 minutes ago, like_ooh_ahh said:

-snip-

At least Apple had the decency to stop shipping machines with 4GB of RAM... Jeez Microsoft. They're really trying to kill the Surface brand by making water downed models that barely work.

[MegaDave91]

Dropping a $500 laptop? That's a start, though it'll need to be much more expensive to reach Linus' level of negligence.

[TempestCatto]

If they wanted to drop something, just give it to Linus.

[DrMacintosh]

9 minutes ago, like_ooh_ahh said:

 Microsoft is rumored to release a new laptop this fall starting at $500 with a 10th gen core i5, 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage for the base model and ships with Windows 10 in S mode.

Mmm, sounds horrible. 

[TrigrH]

9 minutes ago, like_ooh_ahh said:

14nm++++++++++++++++++ i5,

Not enough RAM

ships with Windows 10 in Shit mode.

 

[captain_to_fire]

10 minutes ago, BlueChinchillaEatingDorito said:

At least Apple had the decency to stop shipping machines with 4GB of RAM... Jeez Microsoft. They're really trying to kill the Surface brand by making water downed models that barely work.

Dell comes to mind when it comes to decency. https://www.dell.com/en-us/shop/dell-laptops/inspiron-14-5000-2-in-1-laptop/spd/inspiron-14-5400-2-in-1-laptop 

• 10th gen i3: 2c/4t (not an i5 but still decent for most tasks)
• 8GB RAM 
• 256 GB NVME SSD 
• Windows 10 in S Mode 
• $550 

3 minutes ago, TrigrH said:

-snip-

10th gen mobile chips use 10 nm transistors, also switching out of S Mode to regular Windows 10 is easy https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/4456067/windows-10-switch-out-of-s-mode

Edited September 9, 2020 by like_ooh_ahh

[TrigrH]

4 minutes ago, like_ooh_ahh said:

10th gen mobile chips use 10 nm transistors 

Most of them dont:

https://ark.intel.com/content/www/us/en/ark/products/series/195732/10th-generation-intel-core-i5-processors.html

[BlueChinchillaEatingDorito]

9 minutes ago, like_ooh_ahh said:

Dell comes to mind when it comes to decency. https://www.dell.com/en-us/shop/dell-laptops/inspiron-14-5000-2-in-1-laptop/spd/inspiron-14-5400-2-in-1-laptop 

• 10th gen i3: 2c/4t (not an i5 but still decent for most tasks)
• 8GB RAM 
• 256 GB NVME SSD 
• Windows 10 in S Mode 
• $550 

10th gen mobile chips use 10 nm transistors, also switching out of S Mode to regular Windows 10 is easy https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/4456067/windows-10-switch-out-of-s-mode

Actually I'll add Dell into the mix. This thing is a literal joke.

 

Intel Celeron N4120

4GB 2400MHz DDR4

64GB eMMC Hard Drive

11.6" HD (1366 x 768) Non-Touch Anti-Glare

 

CAD $823.78 (~622.50 Freedom bucks)

 

https://www.dell.com/en-ca/work/shop/laptops-ultrabooks/latitude-3190/spd/latitude-11-3190-laptop/bto007l319011usca

 

Yes this is aimed for education markets. But damn this is a pretty bad rip off and from what I can tell, this doesn't look any tougher than a standard Inspiron. And this price doesn't even include any business level support from Dell. Just a standard 1 year mail in warranty. 

[captain_to_fire]

5 minutes ago, BlueChinchillaEatingDorito said:

Yes this is aimed for education markets. But damn this is a pretty bad rip off and from what I can tell, this doesn't look any tougher than a standard Inspiron. And this price doesn't even include any business level support from Dell. Just a standard 1 year mail in warranty. 

It would’ve been better if it ran Chrome OS and priced around $200-300.

[BlueChinchillaEatingDorito]

1 minute ago, like_ooh_ahh said:

It would’ve been better if it ran Chrome OS and priced around $200-300.

Which is why I'm confused on where the money is going. It's not amazing hardware, not durable hardware, not preloaded software, nor is it amazing technical and warranty support. And it can't be the design as that thing is thicker than a seasoned Las Vegas dancer. 

[Arika]

So it's a Surface Laptop Go. Given how well received the Surface Go was, this doesn't surprise me.

[jiyeon]

It sounds like the type of laptop I would buy for web browsing and note-taking in college, except there's no way I'd voluntarily pay $500 for that machine with those specs.

[Doobeedoo]

That's horrible. Am I missing what a "student" is in US though. Chromebooks and these specs for laptops, is kindergarten the target. 8GB RAM and 256GB storage a bare minimum.

[captain_to_fire]

6 minutes ago, Doobeedoo said:

That's horrible. Am I missing what a "student" is in US though. Chromebooks and these specs for laptops, is kindergarten the target. 8GB RAM and 256GB storage a bare minimum.

Microsoft going back to its netbook roots? 

[schwellmo92]

Not everyone needs lots of RAM and storage. This thing will be ideal for document creation, note taking, web browsing and media consumption. Given it is made by Microsoft I would expect the build quality, screen, trackpad and keyboard to all be decent (relative to the other garbage you get in this price range).

[krakkpott]

4GB RAM + 64GB storage? Is it a phone? Are we still in 2014?

[dizmo]

If it has the same quality as the high end Surface products and is making itself cheaper with the storage option I'd bite. I don't need more than 64GB on a laptop anyway. RAM I'd want at least 8GB though, of not 16GB. 

 

One of my biggest worries is screen resolution. Please don't be below 1600x900...

[pythonmegapixel]

On 9/9/2020 at 4:38 PM, schwellmo92 said:

Not everyone needs lots of RAM and storage

No, but I wouldn't class 8GB+256GB (a pretty common combo in this price range) as "lots of ram and storage". I'd class 4GB+64GB as "pathetically tiny"

On 9/9/2020 at 4:38 PM, schwellmo92 said:

. This thing will be ideal for document creation, note taking, web browsing and media consumption. Given it is made by Microsoft I would expect the build quality, screen, trackpad and keyboard to all be decent (relative to the other garbage you get in this price range).

My HP laptop (I forget the model number but it's about the same price) has a reasonably nice keyboard and trackpad, the screen is usable (not the best but perfectly suitable for all everyday use), AND proper specs. Now I'm not saying that all $500 laptops have these, but if you shop around, you can get them.

 

7 minutes ago, dizmo said:

I don't need more than 64GB on a laptop anyway.

The problem is that loads of people these days use a laptop as their only computing device. 64GB is in that case not enough.

 

7 minutes ago, dizmo said:

One of my biggest worries is screen resolution. Please don't be below 1600x900...

It had better not, 1920x1080 is pretty standard in this price range these days.

[dizmo]

35 minutes ago, pythonmegapixel said:

The problem is that loads of people these days use a laptop as their only computing device. 64GB is in that case not enough.

 

It had better not, 1920x1080 is pretty standard in this price range these days.

While true, this device can still do that. If you game? Sure, you'll need a better PC. However I know several people who just use their phone as their only device. This is more than capable of that kind of workload.

 

True, but it's unnecessary on a smaller screen. 1600x900 is fine even on a 13.3" screen. 1080p almost looks too small without changing the scaling.

Though if this is 4:3 they'd obviously have a slightly different ratio.

[pythonmegapixel]

1 minute ago, dizmo said:

While true, this device can still do that. If you game? Sure, you'll need a better PC.

Light to moderate gaming is easily possible on a Ryzen 5 laptop, I don't know how comparable an i5 is these days.

Of course, Microsoft clearly isn't marketing to gamers, except for Xbox they never really have. They'll be marketing to the productivity side. But if you just browse the web and edit spreadsheets and Word documents, then a $300 machine will do you absolutely fine. If you do much more intensive than that, then 64GB is not enough for you. And if your primary use is moderate to heavy gaming then you really need something faster. I don't get who they're hoping to sell to.

[dizmo]

Just now, pythonmegapixel said:

Light to moderate gaming is easily possible on a Ryzen 5 laptop, I don't know how comparable an i5 is these days.

Of course, Microsoft clearly isn't marketing to gamers, except for Xbox they never really have. They'll be marketing to the productivity side. But if you just browse the web and edit spreadsheets and Word documents, then a $300 machine will do you absolutely fine. If you do much more intensive than that, then 64GB is not enough for you. And if your primary use is moderate to heavy gaming then you really need something faster. I don't get who they're hoping to sell to.

A $300 machine won't have the same build quality as a Surface device. Intensive doesn't necessarily mean it takes up a lot of memory. Hell I could probably live with 32GB on a laptop for what I need to do, and that's a lot more than simply browsing, it also involves a lot of spreadsheet work.

 

Obviously gaming requires more. This is NOT marketed to that market, as you've already said. It's also mostly aimed at education, as well as business. Education likely gets pretty large discounts when buying bulk. If the higher end model has 8GB, I'd buy one.

[pythonmegapixel]

1 minute ago, dizmo said:

A $300 machine won't have the same build quality as a Surface device.

Fair point, though if the hardware inside isn't future-proof then external build quality also becomes irrelevant.

1 minute ago, dizmo said:

Intensive doesn't necessarily mean it takes up a lot of memory. Hell I could probably live with 32GB on a laptop for what I need to do, and that's a lot more than simply browsing, it also involves a lot of spreadsheet work.

Do you have another desktop PC though?

 

1 minute ago, dizmo said:

Obviously gaming requires more. This is NOT marketed to that market, as you've already said. It's also mostly aimed at education, as well as business. Education likely gets pretty large discounts when buying bulk. If the higher end model has 8GB, I'd buy one.

That's actually something I hadn't thought of, being from the UK, where schools tend to have lots of desktop PCs all over the place rather than issuing students with laptops.

[dizmo]

3 hours ago, pythonmegapixel said:

Fair point, though if the hardware inside isn't future-proof then external build quality also becomes irrelevant.

 

Do you have another desktop PC though?

 

That's actually something I hadn't thought of, being from the UK, where schools tend to have lots of desktop PCs all over the place rather than issuing students with laptops.

Future-proof isn't a thing.

 

I do now, yes however it doesn't matter. I didn't when I had my laptop....which, aside from the having 128GB of storage instead of 64GB (I didn't fill it up anyway, so moot point), was probably weaker than the machine they're putting out. It had an i5 from 2012 and 4GB of RAM. Other than the RAM...which, really, was perfectly fine, if I didn't use PCs the way I do...it performed flawlessly.

 

[williamcll]

4GB yeaaaah no thanks